Got Guts: HOPX+ injury-resistant intestinal stem cells drive epithelial recovery after severe intestinal ischemia

Get to know senior author Dr. Liara M. Gonzalez of North Carolina State University as she discusses the recently published paper entitled "HOPX+ injury-resistant intestinal stem cells drive epithelial recovery after severe intestinal ischemia" with EIC Prof. Mark Frey.  This paper supports that rISCs are resistant to ischemic injury and likely an important source of cellular renewal following near-complete epithelial loss. Furthermore, the authors have evidence that HOPX controls ISC activity state and may be a critical signaling pathway during ISC-mediated repair. Finally, they use multiple novel methods to evaluate ISCs in a translationally relevant large animal model of severe intestinal injury and provide evidence for the potential role of rISCs as therapeutic targets. 

Amy Stieler Stewart, Cecilia Renee Schaaf, Jennifer A. Luff, John M. Freund, Thomas C. Becker, Sara R. Tufts, James B. Robertson, and Liara M. Gonzalez

https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpgi.00165.2021